1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a photographic printer, and more particularly to a photographic printer for printing an image on a photosensitive material by using a line printer in accordance with image data read from a photographic film.
2. Description of the Related Art
With a conventional photographic printer, an original frame formed on a photographic film such as a color negative film is set at the print station of a film carrier, to print the original frame on a photosensitive material such as color paper. For example, in performing trimming printing, the film carrier is moved in two-dimensions so that an undesired image portion of an original frame is covered by a variable size mask, and the desired trimmed image is printed on a color paper at a predetermined print magnification of a printing lens.
With such a conventional photographic printer, it is necessary to provide a shifting mechanism for moving a film carrier two-dimensionally and a variable size mask for covering an unnecessary image portion. The structure of the printer therefore becomes complicated, resulting in a large and expensive printer. Furthermore, a conventional photographic printer performs frame by frame exposures for exposing a color paper with light passed through a negative film, and the photographic process for a color paper is a continuous process wherein the color paper is transported through various processing baths. Accordingly, in a mini-lab type printer processor, a loop forming unit for reserving a loop of an exposed color paper in order to accommodate a length thereof corresponding to a processing speed difference (i.e., the difference between the rate of travel of the paper through the printer and the rate of travel through the processor) is mounted between a printer unit and paper processor unit. The need for the loop forming unit makes it difficult to construct a compact photographic printer. Also, the conventional photographic printer prints color paper by passing light through a negative film, posing a problem of color crosstalk and making it difficult to obtain an image of high color saturation.